The Biggest What If
by swimmeralltheway
Summary: Charlotte had a normal life as a thirteen year old in the middle class. She had had nothing to do with the gang rivalries, until one day she was jumped but was rescued by the Greasers. This story takes place before the book/after Johnny got jumped by the Socs in the lot. (I own NOTHING. All rights go to S.E. Hinton, except for my characters. Enjoy!) T to be safe. No romance.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Charlotte's POV

I was walking down the street. I had just recently returned some overdue library books (without being able to get out of a 10 minute lecture about not returning them on time) and was heading back to my "home." See, I've lived in Tulsa all my life. A few months ago, my parents and sister decided they wanted to move to Maryland. I immediately declined. I argued and argued for days on end with them to allow me to stay here. Finally, they agreed. But only on two conditions: I had to call them at least four times a week from our old house I was to live at and I had to stay out of trouble. I've been doing pretty well at both. I am part of the middle class. I'm neither a Soc nor Greaser. I usually keep my distance and allow the gangs to battle out their differences. When I was walking home from school, I had had a lot on mind. I had just taken a history test. I was going over all the questions in my head that I got right and wrong. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts I didn't notice a blue mustang pull up to me. I didn't even know I was being surrounded until one of the Socs talked to me.

"Look what we got here. We got ourselves a broad. What's your name, sweetheart?" said one of the Socs. His voice was slightly slurred. Wow, drunk before four, that has to be a new record. I still didn't answer them. They had no reason for picking on me. I wasn't part of the gang rivalry. I didn't do anything to them. I had no reason to listen or answer them.

"Buzz off. I ain't no broad, you freaks." That was my only reply. I attempted to walk out of the circle of boys, but they had me on the ground in a second. I was struggling to get loose. I suddenly felt to coldness of metal on my neck. I stopped moving. I looked up and saw that one of the Socs had a blade pressed against my throat. It looked like he was about to decapitate me, when all of a sudden I heard the sounds of shouts coming this way. The Soc with the knife looked up to see what the source of commotion was, and in that second, I slapped the blade out of his hand and chomped down on his arm. He screamed and tried to pull me off, but I wouldn't budge. The taste of human blood filled my mouth. This is what vampires must feel like when they are biting some unfortunate human in the neck, I thought. While the other Socs were piling into the car, this Soc was still trying to pry me off his arm. You might not know this, but I have teeth of iron. They are my greatest weapon. After a few minutes, I felt the hands of a very strong person pry me off the unfortunate Soc. I didn't know who this was. I looked up to see a tall, muscular, cold-eyed boy. He released me, and then turned his attention on the Soc. Another boy, seventeen or eighteen stood there, holding the poor Soc. He had the same, cold, hard eyes as the first boy, but had almost white hair. The Soc's arm was bleeding badly. You could see where my teeth had cut into his flesh. Surround him were many other boys. One was a handsome boy, with wheat colored hair. Standing next to him was another boy with very complicated curls in his hair. He had that looked on his face that clearly said, "you mess with me, I will beat the tar out of you." Then there was a boy wearing a Mickey Mouse tee shirt with a chipped tooth. Standing next to him was a boy with reddish-brownish colored hair with grayish-greenish eyes. In the back, stood a black haired boy with big, black eyes. He was staring at me. It was hard to tell whether it was fear or admiration. Most of them had greased hair. "Oh great," I thought sarcastically, "two run-ins with two gangs in one day. That has to be a record." While I was thinking, the boy with the muscles cleared his throat with authority.

"Lets teach this Soc a lesson. Greaser style" With grunts of agreement, the whole gang started to punch, kick, and slap the Soc senseless. I felt a little bad for the Soc, seven to one was not very fair. Then I remembered they had done the same thing to me just now. The guilt passed on. What comes around goes around. Once they were done with him, they placed the unconscious Soc in a nearby bush. They suddenly turned to me.

"You have quite a set of biters there. What's your name?" asked the handsome Greaser.

"**My name is Charlotte."**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Charlotte's POV

As I brushed the dirt of my jeans and hoodie, I was asked another question.

"How old are you?" asked the boy with the cold stare and leather jacket.

I answered with sarcasm. "I'm thirty. Geez bozo, how old do I look? I'm thirteen."

A silence fell upon us as everyone looked to the boy that I had spoken to. One of the boys said, "Oh damn." He was giving me this look that clearly said, "You're dead meat." I stood my ground, but inside I was shaking like a leaf. He look me dead in the eye. After a two minute stare-off he dangerously asked, "Do you know who I am?" I slowly shook my head. "Well, I'm Dallas Winston. I don't take talking back too. You're lucky Darry's here, 'cause I would have beaten you to a pulp. This is a warning. You ever talk that way to me, and I'll beat the tar out of you." And with that threat still fresh in the air, he turned around and stormed off. After an awkward silence, I finally said, "Wow, and I thought girls were dramatic." The boys started to laugh, and I joined them.

"I've never seen a girl talk that way to Dally before." someone said between laughs.

"Then you've never met a girl with a spine before." I casually replied back. "So, what are y'alls names?"

The muscular boy said, "I'm Darry. You just met Dally." He pointed to the handsome greaser, "And this here is my kid-brother Sodapop, but you can call him Soda," pointing to Soda's friend, "this is Steve. Two-Bit's the one with the Mickey Mouse tee-shirt. Ponyboy is also my brother, and the boy with the black hair is Johnny. Why are you walking by your lonesome anyway? Shouldn't a thirteen year old girl have someone to walk her home?"

"I can take care of myself, thank you very much." I replied.

"I sooo sure of it, by what I just saw," replied Steve. I responded by taking out my switchblade, a mini beaker of arsenic, and a sharp rock. That earned me a whistle from him. "I stand corrected." Steve said.

"I thought so." I said. To make myself seem cool, I lied by saying, "see, the last time those Socs tried to jump me, well, let's just say it's a good thing I've read enough murder novels to make peoples' death look like accidents." I smiled sweetly and gave a short, high-pitched giggle. It didn't look like many of them believed me.

"You didn't kill anyone, you're bluffing" stated Soda. I had put the switchblade and rock away, but was passing the beaker between both my hands to look intimidating.

"Oh really?" I slowly asked. "I'll remember that."

"So," Soda said awkwardly, "why don't we walk you home. You know, so you don't have to kill anyone."

I rolled my eyes and gave out a short huff. "I appreciate it, but I don't need an escort of seven boys. If one or two of y'all want to come, that's fine by me."

Ponyboy said, "Johnny and I'll go." To this, Johnny just nodded his head in agreement.

"Fine, come on. Let's get going." With an exchange of goodbyes, Pony, Johnny, and I started to walk to my house. After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, I finally asked, "So, what's up?"

Ponyboy just shrugged. "Nothing much. Just came back from a track meet."

"Oh, you run track?" I asked. I'm not that good with small talk, I prefer just to have long conversations, so I jumped at any idea of a conversation starter.

"I swim, but our coach makes us run for dryland. We even have to do weights."

Ponyboy looked shocked that a girl could go sometime like that. "How strong are you?" he asked. I smiled, this was my time to shine. "What do you want me to pick up?" I asked. Pony looked around the area we were standing in, and pointed somewhere. I followed his aim and saw a big rock about the size of three heads put together.

"Do you want to put money on this?" I asked, knowing already who would win.

Pony hesitated, but then pulled out a dime. He then turned his head to look at Johnny. "Do you wanna join?" he asked. Johnny glanced over at me. By the look of his eyes, he was studying me in order not to lose money. He must have come to a conclusion, because he shook his head. I smiled, he also knew I could lift that rock. I proceeded by taking out a dime too. I gave it to Pony to hold. I walked over to the rock. I prepared myself, and then I picked it up and lifted it over my head. I turned, so I was facing Pony. His mouth was wide open in disbelief. I looked at Johnny to see a small smile creep over his face, and he was nodding his head. I dropped the rock and made my way over to Ponyboy. I took the two dimes he was holding and pocketed it.

"Cool. So what's up with you Johnny?" I asked. I wanted to get to know Johnny too.

Johnny just shrugged his shoulders. He either didn't like me, or he was shy. I went with the second one because how could you not like me? I'm amazing. Ponyboy and I talked about all sorts of stuff. He was really nice. I liked him, I don't mean "like-like" him, but just as a friend. We finally arrived at my house.

"So, who else lives with you?" asked Ponyboy.

"Just me. My parents and sister live in Maryland, and I live here. Hey, do any of you guys want a drink or something"

Both shook their heads, but I continued to persuade them. "Oh come on, I have pepsis and cokes." I knew by the look on Pony's face, I had convinced him.

"Ok," Pony said. We came in and I got out some drinks. We sat down at the table and drank. Ponyboy and I continued to have a conversation, and Johnny watched us while still listening. Sadly, after a while, Ponyboy said he had to get home or Darry would start to worry. I bid them farewell, and on the way out, Pony turned to me and asked me a question.

"Hey, Johnny and I are gonna go see a movie. Gone With the Wind. Do you wanna come with us?" His face turned a light shade of pink.

"Sure. I'll meet you there. What time?" I was excited. I haven't been to a movie for a long time.

"Around five. See you at the Nightly Double."

"Ok, bye."

**I walked into my house, and once I was sure the boys couldn't hear me I ran to my room. I took a quick shower and changed into a new pair of jeans, but I kept my same hoodie. I made myself a snack. Once I was done, I looked at the clock. It was three-thirty. I didn't need to leave my house for another hour. Curiosity got the best of me. I started to explore my house. I first went into my parents room. I looked in the drawers. After a few minutes of looking, I found a very particular item. A 22-gauge gun. I unloaded it, and saw that it had three bullets in it. I was about to return it to its rightful place, but I thought a little protection wouldn't hurt. I pocketed the weapon and made my way downstairs. I must have been up there longer than I thought because it was a quarter after four. I made my way out the door and slid the keys under the mat. This is going to be a fun night.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Charlotte's POV

I was on my way to the Nightly Double. My hair smelled good, for I had used some of my mom's good shampoo. I usually don't take showers, I find them a waste of time. But tonight, I wanted to smell good and look presentable. I arrived there to see Ponyboy and Johnny were in the process of sneaking in under the fence. Johnny was just getting under the fence. I silently walked up to them and put a hand on Ponyboy's shoulder and said in a low voice, "What are you boys up to?" Ponyboy jumped and Johnny's head shot up, causing him to hit it on the fence. They both looked at me and smiled once they saw it was me. (Well, at least Ponyboy did. Johnny gave me a weak smile, but he was as white as a sheet.) By this time, I was doubled over in laughing.  
"Golly, Charlotte. You scared us to death." explained Pony.

"Well, don't go breaking the law. Why didn't you just pay to come?" I asked.

Ponyboy looked at me shepley. "Well," he said, "I lost all my money from our bet."

"Well next time, do what Johnny does. He was smart enough to not to underestimate my abilities." I said. I looked over at Johnny. He was still pale and was breathing in short breaths, but tried to hide it behind a forced smile. I was curious about him. We finally snuck under the fence and found some seats. We sat down to enjoy the movie. It turned out it was pretty good. During the movie, I spilled the popcorn. "Darn it!" I exclaimed. "Hey Pony, can you come with me to get some more, I'll pay."

"Sure thing. Be right back, Johnnycake." Pony said. We walked to the concession stand, but the line was really long. We waited in line for a few minutes. Finally we got up to the cashier, and I paid for the food. When we were walking back to our seat, I stopped Pony. I finally gathered up my courage and asked, "what happened to him?"

Pony gave me a quizzical glance. "What do you mean?" he asked, but I could tell he knew dang right what I meant.

"Johnny. What happened?" I really wanted to know. He looked sad and scared. Johnny looked like one of my friends. That friend was dead now. He might be dead, but I can still picture him clearly. Johnny and him looked similar, almost brother-like, but the eyes were not the same. His eyes had a happy, cheerful, funny look in them, while Johnny has a scared, defeated look in them. It's funny how things so similar can be so different.

Pony took a deep breath. "He got jumped by the Socs. Real bad too. They beat him within an inch of his life, and scared him too." Ponyboy proceeded to tell me about the day the gang found Johnny in the lot, beat up, and how he started crying. I literally felt my heart shatter. No human being should ever have to suffer like that. We were quiet for a while until Pony suggested we return back to the movie.

We decided to stay for the next movie and would have stayed for the other two, but Ponyboy said he had to get home. We walked to Ponyboy's house and all went in to say hi. Darry was reading the paper in his armchair, Two-Bit was passed out on the couch, and Soda and Steve were playing poker. They all lifted their heads to see who had came in.

"Hi Charlotte," said Darry, "how's it going?"

"Good," I replied, "we saw Gone With the Wind. It was pretty good." I saw a slight smile pass his face.

"That's good. Now Ponyboy, go to bed. It's already 10:30 PM."

"Darry!" Ponyboy complain. I could tell he wanted to stay up longer.

"No. Bed. Now." Darry inforced. He was pointing in the direction of a room I assumed to be Pony's.

With a sigh of defeat, Pony made his way to his room. "Night guys," said Ponyboy before he closed the door of his room.

"Charlotte, do you want Johnny to walk you home?" asked Darry

"Sure, let's go Johnny."

We walked down the front porch and headed to my house. We walked in silence. Everytime I tried to start a conversation with Johnny, he would either give me a one word answer or a shrug. I stopped attempting to, and we walked in silence. We suddenly walk past this house. From inside, you could hear two people, obviously a man and woman, screaming at each other. I turned to Johnny and you could tell he was trying to remain calm. His eyes gave it away, however. They were big and round with worry, and possible some fear. As we walked past the house, the screaming stopped, and the front door swung open. A tall, black-haired man came out, holding a beer bottle. His expression looked angry and dangerous. He stumbled when he walked, and when he spoke, his words were slurred.

"Where the heck have you been?" said this man, slightly swaying from the abundance amount of alcohol in his system.

"I was at a movie," replied Johnny. Johnny's voice was steady, but he was as white as a sheet.

"Boy, did I ever tell you could go out tonight?" and then he punched Johnny in the stomach. Johnny fell down, but the man wasn't finished. He grabbed Johnny by his shirt collar. "You fucking bastard! This'll show you what happens when you disobey me." The man then took out a gun. He dropped Johnny and pushed him to the ground. Johnny was on his back, looking up at the gun.

"**JOHNNY, NO!" I screamed. A shot filled the night's air, and a new corpse crumbled to the ground.**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Charlotte's POV

Johnny and I stood over the corpse of the man. Before the man was about to shoot Johnny, I had pulled out my gun and shot him in the head. He died immediately. I took a good look at him, and then an idea came to me. "Johnny?" I asked, I was still shaking and the gun was still in my hands.

"Yes," he said in no more than a whisper.

"Is this your dad?" The blood was covering his face, making it difficult to see any resemblance they might of had.

"He was my dad." he said, trying to summon as much indignation he could muster.

"You know I had to. He would have killed you!" I pleaded. I wasn't going to let Johnny be killed.

"I know, but he was still my dad."

Before I could protest further, a small, mean looking woman came running out the door. I assumed this to be Johnny's mom. "What are you doing?" she screamed. "Where have you been? This house is disgusting! Where were you to clean it up? You good for nothing brat! I should have smothered you when you were a baby when I had the chance!" She finally looked down and saw the body of her deceased husband. She looked shocked, but not sad. She looked back up at Johnny. "You killed him! YOU KILLED HIM!" And with that, she bolted past us and started to run down the street.  
"Where do you think she's going?" Johnny asked.

"I don't know. Come on, we have to get out of here!" I said worriedly. The police station wasn't that far away from here, so she might have gone there.

I started to run, and Johnny followed me. We ran to my house. I unlocked the front door and went inside. I grabbed a backpack and started to pack.

"What are you doing?" Johnny asked.

If the situation was any less serious, I would have use sarcasm to show how stupid that question was. In this case, I just gave him the answer. "I'm getting out of here. She saw me, and if you are right and she does go to the police station, I'll be in the chair by noon. Wait! She saw you too. Johnny, you're in just as much danger as I am! She'll just say you helped or something. We have to get out of here! Listen, before you argue, think about this plan. My grandparents have a summer house in Florida. We hitch a ride on a train. We get there and order groceries from the store and put it on my grandparents' names. Then we just stay there until this dies down. You in?" I was talking very quickly. I didn't know if that was because I wanted to get as far away as I could from here or if I was scarred. But if we sat here and talked all day, we would be behind bars soon.

He was staring at his shoes. After a few moments of silence while I packed my bag, he finally responded. "Alright," he said in a soft voice, "I'll come. Can I go back to my house and get my stuff?"

I looked at the clock. It had already been half an hour since the murder (I consider it self defense), and I didn't know if the fuzz was there yet. Johnny needed clothes, because we would be there for awhile. "Fine, but then lets go." Before we headed out the door, I left a note. Because Johnny's mom didn't know my identity, it would take the cops awhile to find out my name and especially where I lived. Ponyboy was the only one from the gang that knew where I lived, so I addressed it to him. It went like this.

Dear Ponyboy,

Looks like we're in some trouble. I had to shoot Johnny's dad, he was going to kill Johnny! We're heading off to a secret hideout I know. Please tell the rest of the gang not to worry about Johnny. He'll be fine, and we will be back as soon as we can. Goodbye,

Charlotte.

I reread the letter, and it looked good to me. I left it on the table. I carried my backpack, which consisted of clothes, my gun, seventy dollars, toiletries, snacks, and my teddy bear (don't tell anyone, but his name is Petruchio). We quickly ran to Johnny's house and packed him some stuff. The we started to run to the train. It was still ten miles away. I looked and saw this red corvette. An idea came to me, and I made my way towards the car. Johnny gave me a look. After a few minutes, I had successfully hotwired it. Johnny gave me a shocked look. "I already killed someone, so what's breaking a few more laws going to do?" Reluctantly, Johnny came into the car. I drove us to the train station. Just in time. We hopped in the baggage area and hid when the search people came to look in them. Now, I was able to finally relax. Surprising, Johnny started the conversation.

"You really killed my dad, huh?"

"Well, what did you want me to do? Let you die. That jerk didn't deserve the dirt he was standing on. He's better off dead. I have no remorse for killing him."

"I always wanted him to care about me."

"Yeah? And I always wanted to fly like superman! Shit like that doesn't happen. Know what, you can think in the past or live in the future."

After a few minutes of silence, Johnny asked, "he was the first, wasn't he?"

"What?" I was confused by what Johnny meant.

"When you told the gang that you had killed someone. It was a lie, wasn't it?" It was more of a statement then a question.

"Yeah," I agreed, "it was only a bluff."

We both remained silent, until I said, "I'm going to bed. Wake me up in a few hours, so you can get some sleep too before we get off. Goodnight."

"Night."

**As I curled up in a ball, I kept replaying today's events in my head. It felt like I had aged twelve years in the past few hours. I still couldn't believe my biggest worry had been how I did on my history test. I kept asking myself a question over and over: what if? What if I never got jumped? What if I never went to the movies with Ponyboy and Johnny? What if I never shot Johnny's dad? I slowing drifted off to sleep, pondering over the decisions I could have made to have avoided this situation.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Charlotte's POV

After about four hours, Johnny woke me up. I then took the next shift. He fell asleep and started to lightly snore. I busied myself by trying to learn how to say the alphabet backwards. It really made time fly. Finally, our stop was approaching us. I woke up Johnny and while the train was moving, we jumped out onto the soft, tall grass. From there we hitched a ride to the summer house. Outside we stood, looking at what laid in front of us. It was a simple one story house. Once inside, it had a mini TV, two bedrooms, and a kitchen. I ran to the kitchen and threw open the fridge. THANK THE LORD! There were sodas. And in the pantry were cans of deliciousness. This would last us about two weeks. I turned to tell Johnny but saw he had already chosen a room and fallen asleep. I decided to do the same thing and jumped into the bed in the other room. It felt good to sleep.

We have stayed in the house for nine days. I explored the house. I found a bookshelf with many books. One of them was The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. I started to read it, and because Johnny was also bored, we read it together. There were some parts in the story he didn't understand, so I had to explain it for him. He was slow at first, but once he got something he wanted to learn more about it. I first taught him what iambic pentameter was.

"So pretty much it's a type of writing?" asked Johnny.

"Pretty much. It's a type of writing used in poetry. You need to have ten syllables, following an unstressed-stressed pattern. Like for example, 'Do thou understand this type of writing?'"

"Ok, let me try. 'This book is good for I like comedies.'"

"That's good, but this is a tragedy."

"Oh," said Johnny looking a bit embarrassed, "the first scene was funny."

"It was." After a few minutes, Johnny spoke again.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why does everything have to always end sadly? And especially to good people. Romeo and Juliet didn't do anything wrong, it was their stupid families. Why can't things ever have a happy ending? I mean, if we're not caught and end up having to stay here forever, I'll never see the gang again, and you won't ever see your family or friends. And if we do get caught, we'll go to jail or get the chair. Either way, our outcome won't end happily. Why is it always that?"

"I don't know Johnny, I don't know."

"I mean, what if Romeo and Juliet didn't meet each other? Then they and countless others would still be alive."

"But the rivalry would've still gone on and people would have probably gotten hurt or killed from that. It had to be done. Sadly, their lives were the price paid to saving others. It ended the rivalry and fighting between the two houses. Sometimes, things must be lost in order to make the difference of what can be found. Do you understand?"

"Kind of."

"You'll understand it, sooner or later."

"Yeah." After a long pause, Johnny said, "I really miss the gang."

"I know, and I also miss my friends back home. There were Benny V, Bean, Muppet, and Lili." These were some of my closest friends. There were more, but these were the first ones I thought of.

"Those are some interesting names." Johnny said with a chuckle.

"And Two-Bit, Sodapop, and Ponyboy are normal names? They're just nicknames for them. See, Benny V is short for Benvolio. She's one of my best friends. She's like a sister to me. Heck, we even call each other twin-sisters. And Bean is also one of my friends. We are on the same swim team. And Muppet, it's a little one of my own creations. No one really knows I sometimes call her that, but I do. Lili is awesome. She's the funny one, aside from me of course. They're all really nice people."

"You swim?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'm ok at it."

"I never learned how to swim. In Tulsa, there ain't many places you can go for a dip."

"Hm. I still wanted to learn, so if I ever was in a body of water, I wouldn't drown. If I go out in this life, it's not gonna be because of something stupid like that. I want to be remembered when I die."

"I never thought about it that way."

"Being on the run for murder and having to stay cooped up in a house gives one a lot of time for thinking."

"It does." After a brief moment of silence, I crossed the line. "Can you tell me about your parents?"

Johnny thought about this for a moment. "You really want to know what they have done?"  
"I do."

"**Ok, but don't interrupt." And for the next hour and a half, Johnny told me EVERYTHING about his parents. What they did, how they acted, how cruel they were, etc. I have never felt so bad for a person in my life. After hearing what Johnny's dad did to him, I only wish was that he had died a painful death, instead of a quick and easy one. We continued to read The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet and then called it a night. When I was in bed, I thought about what Johnny had said. Why can't everything have a happy ending?**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Charlotte's POV

I called the grocery store and ordered some chocolate cake and other not-as-delicious food. Hey, why not? Then I asked them to bring a copy of the newspaper. I wanted to see if it was safe to go out yet. Once our supplies were left on the doorstep, and the delivery boy left, I brought it inside. I first turned to the newspaper. I looked through it, but there was nothing about the murder. I then turned my attention on the cake. Cake... What would I do without it? I cut myself a slice and silently enjoyed it. Johnny came in and immediately eyed the cake. He then followed my lead and got a slice for himself. I came down to business.

"Johnny," I said, "I looked at the paper. There's nothing about us or the murder. I think it's safe to go out for awhile. I can't stay inside any longer, or I'll go crazy! Do you want to go to the beach? I think there are some suits here. It will be really fun." I was excited. I felt like a zoo animal, just sitting in here, waiting for that one day to be free.

After some thought, Johnny finally agreed. I ran to the closet and found some swimsuits. I handed him one and told him to get dressed. I got dressed in mine. Once we were ready, we headed for the beach. It was about a two mile walk, but not that bad. We got some weird looks from passers, but nothing too serious. We finally arrived at the beach. I ran on the sand and stood ankle deep in the magnificent ocean. Johnny joined me.

"Isn't it beautiful?" I asked.

"What?"

"The ocean. The waves. Everything about it. It's so peaceful and nice." Tears came to my eyes as I remembered the friend I once had who had told me the same thing. He would have enjoyed looking at the ocean too, if he still could. I looked out and spotted some sailboats. The white sails looked perfect against the blueness of the water. The scene that laid before me would be one that famous painters would spend years trying to capture on canvas. No watercolor or marker could recreate it. The ocean was one of a kind. I was about to suggest to go in the water when I heard a gut-wrenching scream. I looked to where the voice came from and saw a group of people mostly children, in the ocean. My gaze then averted to the grey dorsal fin circling the group.

"Crap Johnny!" I said. I frantically looked around, and I saw a big rowboat. An idea formed in my head. "Johnny, help me with this!" We both pushed the boat into the water and got in. We started to row it and headed out to the people. As I approached, I could tell the shark was a great white. Saying it was huge would be an understatement. It looked like the shark from Jaws. It was at LEAST fifteen feet long. I started to grab people and pull them into the boat. I looked up and saw the one kid, no older than eight, too afraid to move. I ripped of my clothes till only my swimsuit was on and dived in. I swam over to the girl and started to pull her towards the boat. Finally, I arrived at the boat. Johnny reached for her and I gave her one more push, so that he could reach her. Once she was in, I started to climb in. Suddenly, I felt the weight of tons crash down on my left leg. Then a force was so strong it pulled me back. I was being pulled under the water. I couldn't see, but I knew I was now on the menu for this great white shark. I started to kick and punch, but nothing worked. I was running out of oxygen. Desperately, I reached out and felt the nose of the shark. I punched it, but it would not let go. Finally, I just reached and pulled out one of its eyes. It let go of me, and I drifted to the surface. All I remember was a set of hands pulling me onto the boat and a crying Johnny before I blacked out.

I woke up and was first acquainted with the color white. "Great," I mumbled, "I'm dead." I suddenly heard a high, female voice ask, "What did you say, sweetie?" I turned my head to see a nurse. "Are you dead too?" I asked. I was very confused.

"No silly," she said with fake cheeriness, "you're in the hospital." Her voice suddenly became serious with awe and amazement. "You saved those people from that shark. That was really brave of you." All the events that had occurred rushed over me like the waves on the beach.

"Did they all make it?" I asked. I was scared she would say no.

"Yes, they all did."

I sighed in relief. "Is Johnny ok?"

"Who's Johnny?"

"He's the tan kid with the greased, black hair."

"Oh, he's fine. The doctor had to give him the shot, though. He was going crazy to try to visit you. You can see him shortly."

I smiled. I looked down at my feet. It was a good thing I had not eaten, for I would have thrown it all up. Where my left leg should have been was nothing. I could feel the tears start to come to my eyes. "Where is my leg?"

"I'm so sorry. That shark took a good amount of it when it bit you. We had to amputate the rest." She sounded really sincere, but I was still somehow mad at her.

I could feel myself start to shake. "Can I see Johnny now?" I said in a whisper.

"Of course, I'll be right back."

A few minutes later, the nurse beckoned Johnny into my room. "Hey Johnny." I said.

"Hey. You found out?" he said a little nervously.

"Yes. I would have never noticed my whole leg being gone if it wasn't for you," I said sarcastically. "I guess I can also wear an eyepatch and say I'm a pirate."

"I'm really sorry."

"For what? You did nothing wrong."

"I shouldn't have let you go in to get that girl. You would've still had your leg."

"And let her die? Johnny, if losing a leg means I can save a life, I would've been happy to lose an arm too. I'm just glad everyone made it."

"**Yep. There are some people who want to see you." I turned to the door and was joined by, no other than, the gang.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Charlotte's POV

I was shocked but happy to see the gang. I only had known them for a little while, but they already felt like my family.

"Hey Charlotte. How's it going?" asked Ponyboy.

"Everythings going great," I said sarcastically, "I get to sit on my lazy butt all day and stare at the ceiling. And for a limited time offer, I get crappy hospital food too! I'm just living the life."

"Sorry." said Ponyboy.

"Sorry to snap at you, just when someone loses her leg, it makes the person quite grumpy."

"So," said Darry trying to change the conversation topic, "Good news is the fuzz ruled your case as self defence. So, you guys just have to go to a court hearing then it's over."

"Really? What about Johnny's mom? She should be arrested for child abuse." I said. I was angry. No person should be able to even breathe free air for abusing their children. It's no fair.

"If she's in jail, I will have to go to a boy's home." said Johnny quietly.

"Not technically. You just need a guardian, right?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"Well, maybe I could get my parents to agree to let you stay with us."

"Really? You could do that?" asked Johnny.

"I don't see why not. Now, someone help me up, I need to go out and stretch."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Steve.

"Of course not! I'll probably pass out after two minutes, but I need to get out of this bed."

So while Darry held my left arm and Steve my right, I slowly got out. I would've fallen if the boys weren't there to catch me. I hopped my way to the other side of the room to grab some crutches that somehow were there. I turned to the rest of the gang and said, "Lets go." We walked out of my room and down the hallway. I made it to the waiting room before a force came up to me and gave me a big hug. We both fell down and when I looked up I saw the eyes that belonged to my best friend Benvolio. "Benny V" I screamed. She gave me a funny look.

"Well, it's not Tybalt." she said.

"Tybalt is a Capulet! Us Montagues must stand together. Now help me up."

She helped me up and handed me back my crutches. "Here you go." she said.

"Wait," I said, "How are you in Florida?"

"I came as soon as I heard of the shark attack. Romeo, I am so proud to call you my cousin and twin sister."

"Thanks coz. That means a lot." I suddenly realized that the gang was right behind me. I turned around to see their confused faces. I laughed at them. "Guys, I am a complicated person. You think I don't have any other friends? I have my own gang at school. We are in the franchise. We use names from The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. I'm Romeo and this is Benvolio. She's my twin sister. Not bloodwise, but she still is my sister. You might get to meet the rest of the gang, if you want to. Now, I want to go home."

"Oh, of course Romeo," said Two-Bit in a high, girl-like voice, "But first: O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?"

"You've read it?" I asked.

"Well, the english class I keep retaking reads that book every year. I must've remembered it?" he said proudly but with a hint of embarrassment, as if being a smart greaser was a disgrace.

"Wait," I gasped, "You can read?"

"**Shut up." Two-Bit tried to say while keeping a straight face. It did not last long. Everyone started to laugh. We were quite the scene. You have seven guys and two girls, one with only one leg, laughing their heads off. I love my friends!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Charlotte's POV

I has been three weeks since that day in the hospital. Johnny and I had gone to the hearing. We were both innocent, but Johnny was still placed in the care of his mom. I had gotten my prosthetic leg and physical therapy. I was working quite well. My parents came to visit me. My mom had a breakdown and my sister almost fainted. My dad, however, was very proud of me. He said to be proud of my "battle scars." My mom wanted me to come with them back to Maryland, but I refused. We argued for hours. After exchanges of cuss words, tears, shouting, and a thrown shoes (me of course), we finally agreed that I could stay for the rest of the year to finish my education, but then I had to come to Maryland to live there. I was sad at this, but I agreed. Maybe I could convince them later. I was thinking of all the possible arguments I could use to stay here while I was walking to swim practice. I walked into the building, only to be attacked with hugs by my teammates. It felt good to see everyone. I saw Bean and walked to her.

"Bean!" I screamed.

"Charlotte!" she replied. We both came up and hugged each other. Muppet came too.

"Hey Muppet. How's it going?" I asked.

"Really? I haven't seen you for a month and that's all I get?" she asked.

"Pretty much. So, where's Lili?" Just as I asked, Lili came up to me and hugged me.

"Hey girl." I said.

"Hey Charlotte." said Lili. We were about to talk more when my coach said, "Alright. Time to get into the water."

I took off my clothes till I was only wearing my swimsuit. Everyone looked at my prosthetic leg, where my actual leg should've been. I walked over to the lane I was going to swim in and took off my prosthetic leg. I hopped into the water. I was nice being back. I swam two laps and knew it would take awhile before I could swim easily with just one leg. My coach wrote the set on the board. It, of course, had to be a breaststroke set. That definitely required two legs. My coach addressed me and said, "Um, you can do the freestyle set with Megan and Ellie." I nodded and made my way to the freestyle lane. Ellie was a greaser-gal. She was funny but wild. She loved parties. She always voiced her opinions and stood up for what she believed in. She really liked hitting on the guys. Meagan, on the other hand, was shy and timid. She was as nice as heck, but she usually kept to herself. She was a good person. She reminded me of Johnny, except that her eyes were not filled with fear. She was a happy person. Once I started to swim to freestyle set, I thought to myself, "What if I didn't lose my leg? Then I could have swam breaststroke." But I knew that I couldn't go back and change that day, that decision, nor dwell upon the past. I thought of Timon and Pumbaa's famous quote, "Hakuna Matata," while I swam, listening to the beat of splashes that my one leg made.

Coming soon...The Biggest "What If": Part Two

Dun Dun Dunnnnnnnnnnnn!


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